Trump’s Russia problem: who’s in the deepest?

Who from the Trump campaign is allegedly connected to Russia and how are they trying to refute the allegations?

Five key figures from the Donald Trump campaign are facing new complications in their efforts to rebut allegations of inappropriate contacts with Russian operatives during and after the presidential race. Heres a look at the latest.

Let me be very clear: I did not collude with Russia, nor do I know anyone else in the campaign who did so, Kushner said. I had no improper contacts. I have not relied on Russian funds for my businesses. And I have been fully transparent in providing all requested information.

Kushner has denied wrongdoing in every case. While no evidence of lawbreaking by Kushner has come to light, he could, based on the allegations against him, face charges of breaking campaign finance laws or making false statements.

If the summaries of the conversations are accurate, Sessions could face charges of making false statements before Congress, a serious though rarely prosecuted and difficult to prove crime.

But Sessions was already under immense pressure, after Trump told the New York Times that he regretted hiring him after Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation. (As head of the justice department, Sessions would typically have overseen the FBI investigation of Trump campaign contacts with Russia, but as a former member of the campaign himself, Sessions had a clear conflict of interest, according to internal rules and his own judgment.)

Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy)

Trump rolls his eyes when asked if Sessions should resign; tells reporter to be quiet when asked about health carepic.twitter.com/terMPUDSlz

Sessions should have never recused himself, and if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job, and I would have picked somebody else, Trump told the Times. In response, Sessions said he planned to stay in the post. The president was asked about that decision and rolled his eyes.

Manafort resigned from the Trump campaign after his name turned up in a secret ledger of payments by a Moscow-backed Ukrainian political party. Failure to register as a foreign agent is not a crime that is typically prosecuted, though the retroactive filing may involve a fine.

Flynn retroactively registered as a foreign agent this year after working as a consultant in 2016 for a Turkish businessman. Flynn also reportedly took tens of thousands of dollars from Russia-linked companies for speeches and possibly other unspecified services.

Like Kushner, Flynn failed to note his foreign contacts on disclosure forms used to obtain or, in Flynns case, maintain security clearances. Flynn spoke with Pentagon investigators as part of the process. He also later spoke separately with FBI agents about his contacts with the Russian ambassador.

If Flynn was less than frank in any of those legally binding conversations, he may run a risk of prosecution for making false statements, the New York Times noted. He may also be prosecutable for having taken foreign payments without permission as a retired military officer, for having failed to register as a foreign agent and for having failed to comply with subpoenas.